Mobile networks that facilitate transfer of information at broadband rates continue to be developed and deployed. Such networks may be colloquially referred to herein as broadband wireless access (BWA) networks and may include networks operating in conformance with one or more protocols specified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and its derivatives, the WiMAX Forum, or the Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.16 standards (e.g., IEEE 802.16-2005 Amendment), although the embodiments discussed herein are not so limited. IEEE 802.16 compatible BWA networks are generally referred to as WiMAX networks, an acronym that stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, which is a certification mark for products that pass conformity and interoperability tests for the IEEE 802.16 standards.
A variety of different device types may be used in broadband wireless technologies. Such devices may include, for example, personal computers, handheld devices, and other consumer electronics such as music players, digital cameras, etc., that are configured to communicate over the wireless broadband networks. Service providers of the wireless broadband networks may activate and enable subscriptions for such wireless devices.
Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) are operators that typically do not have their own licensed frequency allocation of radio spectrum, but rather arrange to purchase, for example, air time such as minutes of use (MOU) from traditional mobile operators or service providers for sale to their own customers. Currently, functionality does not exist to over-the-air (OTA) activate MVNOs in wireless broadband networks such as WiMAX. The WiMAX standard, for example, defines a network access provider (NAP) and a network service provider (NSP) as the two business entities. Using the standard NSP advertisement for MVNOs may consume too much bandwidth with a large number of NSPs. Further, the WiMAX standard does not support advertisement of MVNOs (e.g., NSPs that are not directly connected to the NAP). Thus, techniques and configurations are needed to allow activation of MVNOs in such wireless broadband networks.